Identification and phylogenetic relationships of Vahlkampfia spp. (free-living amoebae) by riboprinting

Abstract The riboprinting technique (restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis of polymerase chain reaction amplified ribosomal DNA) was applied to 8 strains representing 7 species of amoebae from the Vahlkampfia genus (Family Vahlkampfiidae, Class Heterolobosea). The length of the 18S ribosomal gene was found to vary significantly between species. Restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis following digestion of the amplified ribosomal DNA with 18 restriction enzymes confirmed the separate identity of each species, originally based on morphological characteristics, and generated a phylogenetic tree. Two strains assigned to the same species yielded identical riboprints.